The Imprisoning War
by Hero Chosen By The Gods
Summary: Redone! for those of you who know me as Master Link at Zelda Legends.This is a retelling of the Imprisoning War, with my own plot twists, but still following the original version. I use the ALTTP map with both ALTTP and OoT locations in it. Edited. RR


The Imprisoning War

Chapter One

Prologue

Long ago, there existed a world called Hyrule. In that world, the people spoke of an ancient relic containing the essence of the gods. That relic was known as the Triforce.

There is a saying from the Genesis Preface, a scroll found in the Book of Mudora , a book containing multiple legends of Hyrule.

Where the Triforce lies, the sky shines gold, not blue,

That is where the wish-granting relic makes mortal dreams come true.

All people in Hyrule heard of this saying and began searching for the divine Triforce. But the relic lies in a place not reachable to men; no one knew where it was. The people began to grow angry and the hunt for the Triforce turned to a lust for power. War broke out and all of the races of Hyrule, the Zoras, Gorons, Gerudo, Hylians, and many more, it seemed, were at each other's neck. But, one day, a man arose through all the bloodshed and maintained order in the world. The races of Hyrule signed peace treaties with each other and once again, peace reigned. But the people still lusted for the Triforce...

In Kakariko Village there lived a young man named Link of nineteen years. Every night he would have strange nightmares...

It was a dark and stormy night, the thunder the loudest it had ever been and the rain pouring more ferociously than it had ever done. Through the darkness, one might see a young man garbed in green was walking the streets of Castle Town, heading to the castle.

Link was walking to Hyrule Castle, but he didn't know why. He just felt as if he had to be here, as if something was calling him to come. He wasn't thinking to move, he was just moving his body. As he rounded the corner on to the pavement leading to the castle, he was shocked by what he saw. Dead guards littered the walkway, some mutilated. They held weapons in their hands, still grasping them as if ready for battle even in death. Link could tell that a mighty struggle had occurred here, to keep something, or someone, from getting in. He felt sorry for the soldiers, all they wanted was peace and tried to protect the castle, but died in the process. Link decided he should move on. Walking up to the entrance, he was careful to avoid stepping on the blood-covered bodies. He stared down at the pavement as he walked, still feeling sorry for them.

Link opened the heavy brown doors and stepped inside the castle, seeing a trail of blood leading up to the Throne Room. What happened here? Link wondered as he looked at the blood; it was still fresh. AGAIN, he felt like he had no control over his body as his feet began to start walking. Heading up to the Throne Room, Link was startled by a loud crash. He looked around himself frantically, but saw nothing. Then he looked down at the floor to see a wounded Hylian Knight. The Hylian Knight looked at Link with a grief-stricken face and a blood-covered body. Link wanted to ask the man what happened, but he wasn't sure if he could speak or, if he was able to, if it would cause him more pain. He decided it best to ask.

"What happened here?" Link questioned.

"I... I couldn't... save her..." he said in a weak voice. "Please... help the princess... You're the only one who can..." Link felt panic. He wanted to protect the princess, but where was she? He felt as if he'd known her for a long time, but he'd never met her before in his life...

"Who did this?" Link asked, worry filling his face.

"He... he was too strong... we couldn't stop hm... He was..." The knight's body fell limp; he was dead. Link didn't know what to do. He wanted to help, but he didn't know who did this or where the princess was or, even worse, if she was still alive. Link looked down at the floor, trying to find any possible clues and saw that the trail of blood continued to the throne, but it turned and went to one side of the chair. What is... Link began to think to himself as he walked over to the throne and crouched down to examine the blood. Link noticed that it went behind the throne; he could see an open space between the chair and the wall it was supposed to be pushed up against. Feeling relief that he may have found the way and worry at the same time as to what he might find behind it, he stood and began trying to shove the throne aside. The chair was so big, and looked so heavy, Link wasn't sure if he could do it. Relief washed over him as it moved. He let go of the throne and turned to look at the secret passage. Link could see the trail of blood ascending a winding staircase. Feeling nervous, he began to slowly walk up. The staircase was so long, it seemed as though it lasted forever. Finally, after what seemed like hours, Link saw an opening ahead and quietly and carefully rounded the corner as to not be noticed if anyone was there. What he saw made him freeze.

Hundreds of dead guards littered the floor doused in their own blood. Link just stood there, waiting, for nothing. He didn't know why he even came to the castle. He didn't know why it seemed as though he knew the princess, and he didn't know why he was waiting. Everything was such a blur, he still didn't know anything about what happened.

Link was startled by a fierce wind beginning to blow. What's going on? he asked himself. Evil laughter filled the room but, even as Link hastily looked around, he saw no one. Suddenly a vile looking man appeared in the shadows; Link couldn't see him clearly. Holding up his hand, a golden triangle began to emanate from it and, out of nowhere, a golden blast came flying out of it at rapid speeds. Bracing himself, Link instinctively held his arms to his face...

Link awoke with a start. A cold sweat was pouring down his forehead and his heart was pounding profusely. He sat up, remembering the dream. Why... why do I have these dreams? he thought to himself. Every night it's the same one over and over again. He lay back down, now a little calmer, and tried to fall back asleep.

The next morning he woke up to sunlight shining in through his window, warming his face. He sat up, yawning, remembering the dream from last night. The thought was quickly discarded as he heard a knock at his front door.

"Just a moment," he called out. He jumped out of bed and walked quickly over to his dresser. He slipped on his white shirt, putting his green tunic over it, securing his belt around his waist and putting on his leather brown gloves. He then pulled on his white-tan pants and slipped on his brown leather boots. Grabbing the last piece of clothing, his green hat, he walked out of his bedroom and to the front door. Link didn't know why he wore this type of clothing, it wasn't normal compared to the rest of what the people of Hyrule wore. He guessed his taste for the clothes came from when he saw the Kokiri when he was young. Link took a liking to the way it looked on him and added his own touches to the style of the Kokiri, hence the pants, gloves, droopy hat compared to the Kokiri pointed hat, and white shirt beneath the tunic. Sometimes he would wear regular clothes, but rarely.

He opened the door to see a man with light brown hair, wearing a blue tunic with black pants and brown boots. In short, he wore normal clothing.

"Ultimus?" Link said in surprise. It wasn't even midday yet. He usually didn't come until after that.

"Hey Link," Ultimus said, smiling at his friend. "Sorry to startle you, I know it's early. There's something going on at the castle. I tried to get in just to walk around, you know how they usually let people in, but the guards said it was off limits."

"That's strange," Link stated.

"I know," replied Ultimus, "so I'm going to sneak in and try and find out what's going on, and I wanted you to come with. I know you're always up for an adventure."

"Do you know how much we would regret that if we were caught?" Link questioned. "But yes, I'm always up for an adventure, so I'll go. You know me too well." Ultimus smiled.

"Now you can show me where that secret way in you found is," Ultimus said. Link smirked. It was true, he had found a secret way in. He liked going to the castle grounds and exploring them when he was a child, and was he ever surprised when he found a secret way in underneath one of the bushes surrounding the castle. He had told his friend that he had found a secret way in, but never told him where it was in spite of Ultimus's constant nagging to tell him.

"Well," Link said, "let's go."

Link and Ultimus stepped out of Link's house. It was a warm day, not too cold, not too hot. The sun was shining, with very few clouds able to be spotted in the sky.

"Nice day, huh?" Ultimus asked as they walked out of Kakariko Village on to the beaten path that led to Castle Town, only a few miles away.

"Yeah," Link answered, looking around at the sky and the majestic fields on either side of them. He could feel the warmth of the sun on his body as they walked.

"So where is this secret passage anyway?" Ultimus questioned.

"You'll see," Link stated.

"Can I even have a clue?" Ultimus pressed the question on.

"No," Link said plainly.

"Fine," Ultimus jokingly retorted. "Race you!" Both men bolted forwards, Link slowly getting ahead of Ultimus.

When they finally arrived at Castle Town, Link had won the race. Both men stopped, breathing heavily from the run.

"You're still faster than me," Ultimus gasped between breaths. Link smiled.

They turned their attention to Castle Town. The people were bustling, as usual, and one could see merchants with stores up and banners posted all over the city telling them to come to their shops.

Link walked in first, followed by Ultimus, and they made their way through the crowds to the walkway leading to the castle.

Link peered around one of the two corners that made up the passage to the walkway to see two guards standing at the entrance of the castle, seemingly talking to each other. He thought they would be there, and quickly formulated a plan.

"We don't want them to see us," Link said, nodding his head toward the guards as Ultimus looked around the corner. He wasn't worried about any of the people around them hearing what they said, they were all too caught up in their own business. "When they look away, run in and go to the right. Be careful not to make too much noise so they don't look our direction."

"Got it," Ultimus replied. Link firmly kept his eyes on the guards, waiting for them to look at one another. After a few seconds, they did.

"Now," Link said calmly and bolted out from behind the corner. He turned to the right, feeling nervous, and kept on going, coming off of the cobblestone and on to the grass. He looked back to see Ultimus closely following, not making any noise, and then looked at the guards who still had their heads turned to one another. As he looked back to his front, he saw the edge of the castle entrance and rounded the corner, Ultimus still following. He slowed to a walk and let Ultimus come to his side. In front of them stood a bundle of bushes and behind that, one of the walls of the castle.

"One of these bushes has steps beneath it leading into a passage that will eventually take you into the castle," Link said, careful to keep his voice low so the guards wouldn't hear him. The explorative feeling he got as a child when he would roam the castle grounds washed over him. He slowly approached the bush to the far left, memories of the wonder he felt when he first found it as a child flooding back.

"It's that one?" Ultimus pointed to the bush Link was approaching, using the same low voice Link had.

"Yes," Link replied, pushing the bush to the side, revealing steps leading underground. He looked up at Ultimus, who had a surprised expression on his face.

"That's a very clever way to hide," Ultimus stated.

"My guess is that it was built in case someone would ever need it in times of war," Link stated.

"That sounds logical," Ultimus said.

"Who's there!?" a voice shouted loudly from around the corner. Both men felt very queasy as they heard footsteps approaching the corner. The world seemed to slow around them.

"Quick, get in," Link whispered quickly, snapping back to reality. Ultimus rushed over and bolted down the steps, Link following suit and pulling the bush back over just in time.

Link caught up with Ultimus, who was already at the bottom of the steps catching his breath. Link took a few seconds to catch his breath.

"That was close," Ultimus stated.

"I know," Link replied. "Let's get going, they might push the bush aside and see us down here."

"Good idea," said Ultimus. They walked down the hall, only seeing torches on the wall that lit their path. Link wondered what could be going on in the castle that the guards would have to keep people out as they walked. Maybe there was talk going on around the castle that nobody could hear?

Finally they came to a corner and rounded it, seeing steps ahead that led up to a hatch and another path to the left of the steps. Link glanced between the path and the hatch, not knowing which one to do first.

"Which do you want to do first, Ultimus?" Link asked. "Explore the path, or see what's going on in the castle?" Ultimus didn't answer, but walked up to the hatch. Link followed. They waited for a sound, but when none came, Link said, "Let's go up."

"Okay," Ultimus replied, curious as Link was to find out. Link reached his hand up and pushed the door open slightly, and stuck his head out. There were no soldiers around, so he scrambled out of the hatch and examined the room. It sported a red carpet, with decorations of the Triforce etched into it in random locations. The walls held ornaments of various shapes and sizes, usually gold, but sometimes silver. At the end of the room there was a door. Link motioned for Ultimus to come up. Just as Ultimus was finally out, the sound of footsteps slowly approaching the door filled their ears. Link quickly turned his head to face Ultimus.

"Let's hurry back down there," Ultimus whispered to Link as he climbed back down, Link following suit. Link closed the hatch and listened as the door in the room opened. They heard footsteps as someone came to stand right above the hatch. Link thought there were two people.

"My lord," someone said, "there seems to be some strange activity going on in Death Mountain."

"Do you know what it is?" the other asked.

"No my lord," replied the other. "But it seems that there is a strange portal forming at the top. It will be large enough to channel a man through in a couple of days. Until then we have no idea what it could be."

"Send some men out to Death Mountain," said the other man. "They will arrive at the mountain in a couple of days."

"Yes sir," the other said. Link heard one man leave the room, but he wasn't sure if someone was still there.

"I have a feeling that this portal is something evil," he said. "Whatever it is, I don't like the sound of it." Link heard him leave the room.

"Well," Link said, "now we know what's going on in the castle. There obviously trying to find out what that portal is."

"Yeah," said Ultimus excitedly. "I say we go and follow them. I wanna know firsthand what's goona be in that portal?"

"Are you implying that you're going to go in?" Link asked.

"No," Ultimus said, "I just wanna be there when someone does."

"Okay," Link said, uneasy. "Let's go see what's in that other passage now."

"Got ya," Ultimus replied, walking down the steps and running down the hall.

"Hey, wait!" Link shouted, chasing after him. At the end the two saw brighter torches and an opening to the left. As Link turned the corner he saw three steps leading up to a chest with brightly lit torches on either side. Ultimus stood there, looking like he was deep in thought.

"Do you think we should open it?" Link asked. He wanted to, but he also didn't want to arouse suspicion.

"Who's goona know?" Ultimus finally said, smirking. Link stepped up to the chest, still feeling uneasy. He opened the chest and stared down in awe. Two finally crafted swords sat in it.

"Well?" Ultimus asked, bringing Link out of his trance.

"There's two swords in here," he said.

"We might need them when we go to Death Mountain, this is a nice find," Ultimus said excitedly. "Aren't you good at swordplay?"

"Yes, I learned when I was a kid," Link said, still staring in awe at the two blades. He pulled one out. The sword that Link held had a dark blue hilt finally wrapped in black and gold leather where one holds it, with red jewels decorating the tip of the hilt, and two more red jewels on either side of the cross-guard. The sword was placed in a long, black sheath with golden designs etched around it. Link looked back at Ultimus, seeing that he was staring in awe.

"That's a nice sword you scored there," he said. "Is there another?"

"Yes," Link said, strapping the sword on his back so he could quickly pull it out with his left hand if he needed to. He still didn't feel good about just taking a sword of such fine quality. Ultimus stepped up and peered into the chest, pulling out a red-hilted sword wrapped in black leather where one holds it with a silver jewel placed in the center of the cross-guard. His sword was placed in a silver sheath with golden decorations etched around it.

"Now we both have one," Ultimus said, strapping the sword on his back so he could quickly pull it out with his right hand if needed. "But it just doesn't feel right just taking these swords. It doesn't feel right just taking anything, I hate stealing."

"I know what you mean," Link stated, showing his understanding. "If we're going to follow them to Death Mountain, we should probably get going."

"Alright," Ultimus replied.


End file.
